Sunday, January 29, 2012

KINGSTON, Ontario – A jury on Sunday found an Afghan father, his wife and their son guilty of killing three teenage sisters and a co-wife in what the judge described as "cold-blooded, shameful murders" resulting from a "twisted concept of honor" in a case that shocked and riveted Canadians.

Prosecutors said the defendants allegedly killed the three teenage sisters because they dishonored the family by defying its disciplinarian rules on dress, dating, socializing and using the Internet.

The jury took 15 hours to find Mohammad Shafia, 58; his wife Tooba Yahya, 42; and their son Hamed, 21, each guilty of four counts of first-degree murder. First-degree murder carries an automatic life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years.

After the verdict was read, the three defendants again declared their innocence in the killings of sisters Zainab, 19, Sahar 17, and Geeti, 13, as well as Rona Amir Mohammad, 52, Shafia's childless first wife in a polygamous marriage.

Their bodies were found June 30, 2009, in a car submerged in a canal in Kingston, Ontario, where the family had stopped for the night on their way home to Montreal from Niagara Falls, Ontario.
The prosecution alleged it was a case of premeditated murder, staged to look like an accident after it was carried out. Prosecutors said the defendants drowned their victims elsewhere on the site, placed their bodies in the car and pushed it into the canal.

Ontario Superior Court Judge Robert Maranger said the evidence clearly supported the conviction.

"It is difficult to conceive of a more heinous, more despicable, more honorless crime," Maranger said. "The apparent reason behind these cold-blooded, shameful murders was that the four completely innocent victims offended your completely twisted concept of honor ... that has absolutely no place in any civilized society."

In a statement following the verdict, Canadian Justice Minister Rob Nicholson called honor killings a practice that is "barbaric and unacceptable in Canada."

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JENNIFER WALSTRAND REMEMBERED

JENNIFER WALSTRAND: A BEAUTIFUL PERSON

I wish to thank the anonymous tipster who helped solve this senseless murder. May the family and friends of Jennifer Walstrand, much beloved Jennifer, find some peace in knowing what happened.

JENNIFER WALSTRAND REMEMBERED

"I am Jennifer's aunt and I want to thank you for staying on this and for loving Jenny. She was such a beautiful, happy, life-loving person.

I will always remember her as my "Angel Face", laughing and happy, with so much love in her heart for her family and friends. There was absolutely no sense in her death and whoever chose to steal her life needs to be caught and punished severely."

CRIME GLOSSARY

ABET: TO AID A CRIMINAL

ACCOMPLICE: TO ASSIST IN A CRIME

AD HOC: HIRED TO HANDLE ONLY ONE PROBLEM

AD LITEM: GUARDIAN APPOINTED FOR A LAWSUIT

AKA: ALSO KNOWN AS

ALLOCUTION: DEFENDANT'S STATEMENT TO THE COURT BEFORE SENTENCING

APB: ALL POINTS BULLETIN

CAVEAT: A WARNING, BEWARE

CHAMBERS: PRIVATE OFFICE OF THE JUDGE

CODIS: NATIONAL DATABASE OF DNA PROFILES

DOA: DEAD ON ARRIVAL

EX PARTE: MOTIONS GRANTED FOR ONE PARTY ONLY

EXCULPATORY: EVIDENCE WHICH MAY EXCUSE A DEFENDANT'S ACTIONS

FORENSICS: SCIENTIFIC PROCESSING OF EVIDENCE

GAG ORDER: TO PROHIBIT FROM SPEAKING PUBLICLY

HEARSAY: SECOND-HAND EVIDENCE

IMPEACH: TO DISCREDIT THE TESTIMONY

IN ABSENTIA: CRIMINAL TRIAL WITHOUT THE DEFENDANT PRESENT

INDICTMENT: FORMAL DOCUMENT CHARGING A PERSON WITH CRIMINAL OFFENSE

INJUNCTION: COURT ORDER TO REFRAIN FROM AN ACTION

INQUEST: JUDICIAL INQUIRY OR EXAMINATION BEFORE A JURY

JONES RULE: LAW WHICH COVERS INJURIES TO CREW AT SEA

JURISPRUDENCE: STUDY OF LAW AND LEGAL QUESTIONS

M'NAUGHTEN RULE: LEGAL TEST OF CRIMINAL INSANITY

M.O. (MODUS OPERANDI): DISTINCT PATTERN THAT SUGGESTS THE WORK OF A SINGLE CRIMINAL

MIRANDA: WARNING OF YOUR RIGHTS

NOLO CONTENDRE: DOES NOT ADMIT GUILT, BUT ACCEPTS THE PUNISHMENT

PERP: PERPETRATOR

PETITION: FORMAL WRITTEN REQUEST TO THE COURT

PLEA BARGAIN: DEAL OFFERED TO THE DEFENDANT BY THE PROSECUTION

PRIMA FACIE: EVIDENT WITHOUT PROOF, OBVIOUS

PRO BONO: LEGAL WORK BY LAWYERS PERFORMED FOR FREE

PRO SE: TO REPRESENT YOURSELF IN COURT

QUID PRO QUO: AGREEMENT BETWEEN PARTIES OF WHAT EACH EXPECTS FROM THE OTHER

REBUTTAL: EVIDENCE TO CONTRADICT A LEGAL ARGUMENT

SUBORNATION OF PERJURY: KNOWINGLY TELLING A LIE UNDER OATH

VACATE: A JUDGE ANNULS A JUDGEMENT

VOIR DIRE: QUESTIONING OF PROSPECTIVE JURORS

WARRANT: A COURT ORDER TO ARREST AND BRING BEFORE A JUDGE

ANDY OF MAYBERRY

TRUE CRIME BOOKS

BITTER HARVEST (Ann Rule writes)

FATAL VISION (Joe McGinniss writes: Jeffery McDonald)

GREEN RIVER,RUNNING RED (Ann Rule writes: Gary Ridgeway)

IN COLD BLOOD (Truman Capote writes)

SMALL SACRIFICES (Ann Rule writes: Diane Downs)

THE STRANGER BESIDE ME (Ann Rule writes: Ted Bundy)

YOU CAN WRITE TRUE CRIME NOVELS

TRUE CRIME MOVIES

10 RILLINGTON PLACE (John Christie)

ALPHA DOG (Jesse James Hollywood)

BIRDMAN OF ALCATRAZ (Robert Stroud)

BONNIE AND CLYDE

BOYS DON'T CRY (Brandon Teena)

BULLY

CATCH ME IF YOU CAN (Frank W. Abagnale, Jr.

CHANGELING (Christine Collins)

COMPULSION (Leopold and Loeb)

DEAD MAN WALKING (Sister Helen Prejean)

DOG DAY AFTERNOON (bank robber Sonny Wortzik)

DONNIE BRASCO

FARGO

GOODFELLAS (Henry Lee)

GUYANA TRAGEDY: THE STORY OF JIM JONES

HEAVENLY CREATURES (two New Zealand girls kill mother))

HELTER SKELTER (Charles Manson)

HENRY: PORTAIT OF A SERIAL KILLER (Henry Lee Lucas)

IN COLD BLOOD (murder of the Clutters)

KARLA (Karla Homolka and Paul Bernardo)

MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF EVIL (murder in Savannah)

MISSISSIPPI BURNING (murder of civil rights workers)

MONSTER (Aileen Wuornos)

MURDER IN NEW HAMPSHIRE (The Pamela Wojas Smart Story)

REVERSAL OF FORTUNE (Sunny Von Bulow)

SAVAGE GRACE (Barbara Daly Baekeland)

SERPICO

SILKWOOD

SMALL SACRIFICES (Diane Downs)

SUMMER OF SAM (David Berkowitz)

SWOON (Leopold and Loeb)

THE BLACK DAHLIA (Elizabeth Short)

THE EXECUTIONER'S SONG (Gary Gilmore)

THE FALCON AND THE SNOWMAN

THE FRENCH CONNECTION (Popeye Doyle)

THE ONION FIELD

THE YOUNG POISONER'S HANDBOOK ( Graham Young)

FORMER PRESIDENT BUSH SPEAKS ON 4TH OF JULY, 2009

"Freedom is beautiful, freedom is precious, freedom must always be defended."

HONOR OUR VETERANS TODAY ..AND ALWAYS

Don't forget Veterans Day tomorrow--We as a people should be very thankful for the men and women who have served our country-so we can be free. Tomorrow I will go to Los Osos cemetry to put flowers at my Fathers grave and remember to be thankful for all he gave to our country in WWII and Korea. Blessed be the USA
by Mary A